A damaged building in Erbil following the Iranian strike
Iraq looks beyond headwinds for the upside in 2024
Optimism about Kurdish production increases contrasts with a messy security situation that could obstruct oil and gas progress
Iraq’s one-step-forwards, two-steps-back progress is continuing in 2024, with recent improvements in northern crude output clouded by a deterioration in the country’s wider security situation. An Iranian missile strike on the Kurdish capital of Erbil on 15 January coincided with a general uptick in militia violence in the country—regional fallout from the Israel-Hamas conflict. A drone attack on the Khor Mor gas field in the Kurdistan region on 25 January, damaging Emirati company Dana Gas’ liquid storage tank, has reinforced oil and gas companies’ vulnerability to militia violence in Iraq’s north. The incidents obscured some recent good news for Iraq: crude production is trending upwards ag
Also in this section
23 March 2026
A complex and sometimes contradictory web of factors that include unpredictable oil prices, the globalisation of LNG markets, the expansion of Middle Eastern sovereign capital and the growth of datacentre demand will shape the energy landscape beyond 2026
23 March 2026
The Strait of Hormuz crisis highlights how key waterways can become global chokepoints
20 March 2026
Attacks on key oil and LNG assets across the Gulf mean a prolonged supply disruption, with damage to Qatar’s export capacity undermining confidence in the global gas system
20 March 2026
The US may be systemically stripping Russia of key geopolitical allies, but Moscow can reap rewards from the Hormuz crisis, both in the short and long term
